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California) has been passed which authorizes seizure of their property.11 As a
result of their prolonged exclusion, interests and possessions have had to be
abandoned or sacrificed because they have not been able to properly safeguard
or care for them.12 If a relatively mild curfew regulation imposed upon citizens
brought us "to the very brink of constitutional power" it is evident that a mass
evacuation of American citizens without hearing or trial has plunged us into
unwelcome depths below.
We conclude, then, that much less serious infringements of the rights of
citizens than evacuation have been countenanced by the courts thus far only
because of an alleged military necessity and because the courts, at a critical
time, desired to give the military commanders every legitimate aid and every
benefit of the doubt in the prosecution of the war.
Nor has the Military or the Government ever tried to defend or to explain
evacuation except on the grounds of "military necessity." At the time of the
declaration of war there were persons of German ancestry, of Italian ancestry,
and of Japanese ancestry on the West Coast, individuals who might be identified in the popular mind with one or another of the three most powerful
nations against which we were fighting. In the case of those of German and
Italian ancestry, citizens were in no way disturbed in their movements or
material interests and such restrictions as were placed upon the aliens were
speedily removed. In the case of those of Japanese ancestry curfew, travel
and contraband restrictions were imposed on citizens as well as on aliens and
finally the whole group, regardless of citizenship, was removed from the area
designated by the military commander and placed in detention.
If military necessity and not race prejudice dictated this differential treatment, two main claims must be established: (1) that the danger was so real and
immediate and the people of Japanese ancestry constituted so dangerous an
element that the drastic action taken and the rejection of alternatives were
reasonable, and (2) that the Caucasian groups of enemy ancestry were manifestly less dangerous.
In connection with the second point particularly, it would seem necessary to establish that white men in America are judged by the same criteria
which are applied to yellow men. If part of the "military necessity" for evacuating persons of Japanese ancestry from the West Coast relates to their numbers, it is relevant to determine whether those of German or Italian ancestry
were not as numerous or more numerous. If part of the charge is that "Japanese" were concentrated in certain areas—that, to use the provocative language
of the military, they were "deployed" around sensitive areas and "surrounded"
important installations, it is only justice to determine where the Germans and
Italians were "deployed" and what they "surrounded." If the causes for alarm
were language schools, dual citizenship, or organizations encouraged by the
homeland, it is but elementary justice and honesty to inquire into the status,
"California State Assembly Bill 1975 as amended by the State Senate May 5, 1943.
12Edmonia Grant, "That All May Be One," pamphlet issued by National Intercollegiate Christian Council, 600 Lexington Ave., New York, N. Y., Oct. 9, 1942, p. 2; New
York Times, Mar. 10, 1942, special dispatch from San Francisco of Correspondent
Davies, Mar. 1942; Richard C. Mills, "Second Report on the Japanese Evacuation Situation," Y. M. C. A. and Y. W. C. A., 715 South Hope St., Los Angeles, Calif., Mar.
24, 1942, pp. 1-2.
Object Description
| Title | The Case For The Nisei |
| Subjects | Identity and values--Nisei |
| Type | image |
| Genre | Books |
| Language | eng |
| Collection | Hirasuna Family Papers |
| Collection Description | 113 items |
| Project Name | California State University Japanese American Digitization Project |
| Rights | Rights not yet transferred |
Description
| Local ID | csufr_hfp_0746 |
| Project ID | csufr_hfp_0746 |
| Title | Page 5 |
| Creator | Japanese American Citizens League |
| Date Created | Unknown |
| Subjects | Identity and values--Nisei |
| Type | image |
| Genre | Books |
| Language | eng |
| Collection | Hirasuna Family Papers |
| Collection Description | 5.36 x 8.50in |
| Rights | Rights not yet transferred |
| Transcript | California) has been passed which authorizes seizure of their property.11 As a result of their prolonged exclusion, interests and possessions have had to be abandoned or sacrificed because they have not been able to properly safeguard or care for them.12 If a relatively mild curfew regulation imposed upon citizens brought us "to the very brink of constitutional power" it is evident that a mass evacuation of American citizens without hearing or trial has plunged us into unwelcome depths below. We conclude, then, that much less serious infringements of the rights of citizens than evacuation have been countenanced by the courts thus far only because of an alleged military necessity and because the courts, at a critical time, desired to give the military commanders every legitimate aid and every benefit of the doubt in the prosecution of the war. Nor has the Military or the Government ever tried to defend or to explain evacuation except on the grounds of "military necessity." At the time of the declaration of war there were persons of German ancestry, of Italian ancestry, and of Japanese ancestry on the West Coast, individuals who might be identified in the popular mind with one or another of the three most powerful nations against which we were fighting. In the case of those of German and Italian ancestry, citizens were in no way disturbed in their movements or material interests and such restrictions as were placed upon the aliens were speedily removed. In the case of those of Japanese ancestry curfew, travel and contraband restrictions were imposed on citizens as well as on aliens and finally the whole group, regardless of citizenship, was removed from the area designated by the military commander and placed in detention. If military necessity and not race prejudice dictated this differential treatment, two main claims must be established: (1) that the danger was so real and immediate and the people of Japanese ancestry constituted so dangerous an element that the drastic action taken and the rejection of alternatives were reasonable, and (2) that the Caucasian groups of enemy ancestry were manifestly less dangerous. In connection with the second point particularly, it would seem necessary to establish that white men in America are judged by the same criteria which are applied to yellow men. If part of the "military necessity" for evacuating persons of Japanese ancestry from the West Coast relates to their numbers, it is relevant to determine whether those of German or Italian ancestry were not as numerous or more numerous. If part of the charge is that "Japanese" were concentrated in certain areas—that, to use the provocative language of the military, they were "deployed" around sensitive areas and "surrounded" important installations, it is only justice to determine where the Germans and Italians were "deployed" and what they "surrounded." If the causes for alarm were language schools, dual citizenship, or organizations encouraged by the homeland, it is but elementary justice and honesty to inquire into the status, "California State Assembly Bill 1975 as amended by the State Senate May 5, 1943. 12Edmonia Grant, "That All May Be One," pamphlet issued by National Intercollegiate Christian Council, 600 Lexington Ave., New York, N. Y., Oct. 9, 1942, p. 2; New York Times, Mar. 10, 1942, special dispatch from San Francisco of Correspondent Davies, Mar. 1942; Richard C. Mills, "Second Report on the Japanese Evacuation Situation," Y. M. C. A. and Y. W. C. A., 715 South Hope St., Los Angeles, Calif., Mar. 24, 1942, pp. 1-2. |
